Things in the news

Taliesin · Jan 10, 2015

The ACT Government is set to erase all historical gay sex convictions, Attorney-General Simon Corbell has announced.
Homosexuality was illegal in the ACT up until 1976 and people convicted before that date still hold a criminal record.
Mr Corbell today announced that the laws would be changed to allow men convicted of consensual homosexual acts to have their conviction expunged. "It is important that the ACT provides equality and access to justice for men who were convicted of a crime that by modern day standards is no longer considered a criminal act," he said.
Mr Corbell said men could have been charged with offences including attempted buggery, buggery on a male person and indecent assault on a male person.
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ACT Government looks to erase historical gay sex convictions - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

redux · Jan 11, 2015

In the last years of his life, Matisse -- one of the most famous painters in the world -- all but gave up painting for these huge, colorful collages made out of cut paper.

Most people think of cutting colored paper as something children do, but curator Jodi Hauptman said, "What I might say is that what he's doing is reducing form to its essentials, and that's one of his great achievements."

Hauptman, one of the organizers of "Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs" at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, said, "Even at that point when he'd had a full career, he was well-known, he could have rested on his laurels, and he doesn't; he reaches for something new."

Carving into color: Matisse's stunning cut-outs.
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redux · Jan 13, 2015

In 1781, Benjamin Franklin decided to write about a truly important scientific topic: flatulence.

"It is universally well known, that in digesting our common food, there is created or produced in the bowels of human creatures, a great quantity of wind," Franklin wrote in an essay variously known as "To the Royal Academy of Farting" or simply "Fart Proudly." "That the permitting this Air to escape and mix with the Atmosphere, is usually offensive to the Company, from the fetid Smell that accompanies it."

Franklin's reason for taking up the topic of farting? To urge the Royal Academy of Brussels, which had put out a call for scientific papers, to take up the goal of discovering "some Drug wholesome & not disagreable, to be mix’d with our common Food, or Sauces, that shall render the natural Discharges of Wind from our Bodies, not only inoffensive, but agreable as Perfumes."

In other words, statesman, author, scientist, and inventor Benjamin Franklin wanted scientists to focus on creating a medicine that would make farts smell good.

Of course, the whole essay (which you can read here) was somewhat tongue-in-cheek. Franklin — who was living in Paris at the time — was frustrated by the impracticality of most questions taken up by the scientific establishment, so he wrote this essay in response, but didn't actually send it to the Royal Academy. Instead, he sent copies to a few friends, including British chemist Joseph Priestley and philosopher Richard Price.

In 1781, Benjamin Franklin wrote an essay about farting - Vox
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Taliesin · Jan 13, 2015

Queensland Optus customers had a rude shock on Wednesday morning after their mobile phones clicked over to daylight saving time.
The glitch also affected Virgin customers and all other carriers that use the Optus network.
It meant people who set their phone alarms for 5am were actually woken at 4am.
An Optus spokeswoman said the technical problem mostly affected users in southern Queensland.
It was resolved by 7.30am, but not before dozens of unwilling early risers took to Twitter using the hashtag #optuswrongtime:
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Queensland Optus mobile phones change to daylight saving time | smh.com.au

Borla · Jan 14, 2015

He sure got the short end on this one...

Angry wife cuts off cheating husband’s penis – twice | FOX2now.com

DamnitAll · Jan 14, 2015

The D.C. Metro system continues to suffer at the hands of incompetence, bringing the region's commuters down with it with tragic results.

A day after deadly Metro incident, few details on emergency response - The Washington Post

I thank my good fortune every single day that Metro has no part in my commute anymore.

redux · Jan 14, 2015

I would do this for eight months.

Life inside NASA's plastic dome that simulates life on Mars.

Zak Wilson lives on Mars. Or, at least, that's what he sometimes imagines.

"My life is about as close to living on Mars as is possible on Earth," he says. "At times, it's easy to forget where I actually live — the view out my window is undeniably otherworldly."

For the last three months, Wilson has been living with five other people in a 1,500-square-foot plastic dome on the barren slopes of Mauna Loa, Hawaii. They subsist entirely on freeze-dried or dehydrated food, put on plastic "space suits" every time they want to step outside, and endure a 20-minute delay on virtually all communications with the outside world — to simulate the time it'd take to send a message from Earth to Mars. The six of them will be in this lab for eight months in total — and will never see any other humans.

This is all part of the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) — a NASA-funded experiment that investigates how social isolation and other aspects of life on Mars might affect people, in preparation for a possible mission to Mars in future decades. The current eight-month HI-SEAS mission comes after a pair of previous four-month missions in the same habitat.

Why would someone sign up for eight months in a plastic dome, away from friends and family? "I applied to HI-SEAS because, ultimately, I would love nothing more than the chance to go to Mars," says Wilson, a satellite engineer, who's been blogging about his experience and recently emailed with me to describe life under the dome. "At best, this mission is a practice-run for the real thing. At worst, this is the closest I will ever get to it."

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Borla · Jan 19, 2015

In light hearted news today...

Prankster husband or best dad ever? Dad transforms house into ball pit | abc7chicago.com

rogue49 · Jan 22, 2015

DamnitAll said: ↑

The D.C. Metro system continues to suffer at the hands of incompetence, bringing the region's commuters down with it with tragic results.

A day after deadly Metro incident, few details on emergency response - The Washington Post

I thank my good fortune every single day that Metro has no part in my commute anymore.
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Y'know...this is why I say I go by the "Crushed by the Bus" mindset when preparing for documentation and Disaster Recovery in my IT environments and projects.
Because it REALLY does happen in DC. (if not other major cities)

If you're being diligent, you prepare as if something happens to another.
Hell, to think on the positive side...what if they won the lottery and said, "see ya"

But being killed on the Metro system is much more likely...

Street Pattern · Jan 22, 2015

rogue49 said: ↑

But being killed on the Metro system is much more likely...
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No, being killed in an automobile accident is probably a couple orders of magnitude more likely.

Per passenger-mile, the Metro (even with incompetent management) is about as safe a form of transportation as exists.

rogue49 · Jan 22, 2015

Street Pattern said: ↑

No, being killed in an automobile accident is probably a couple orders of magnitude more likely.

Per passenger-mile, the Metro (even with incompetent management) is about as safe a form of transportation as exists.
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I meant more likely than winning the lottery.
But you are correct sir.
However, the principle is still the same...and that mgmt most often ignores in short-term thinking.

Borla · Jan 24, 2015

This was pretty funny IMO.

Queen Elizabeth once pranked Saudi King Abdullah - Yahoo News

redravin · Jan 24, 2015

Parents are being investigated for letting their kids walk home from the park alone.
Considering that when I was that age and younger my brothers and I would disappear outside for hours, riding our bikes and hiking many miles away this kind of boggles my mind.

Family under investigation for letting their kids walk home alone | Channel 2 News

redux · Jan 28, 2015

U.S. Takes Home Silver Medal in Bocuse d'Or 2015

Bocuse d'Or — the Olympics-like French culinary competition that takes place every two years in January in Lyon, France — announced its winners today after two days of intense kitchen competition. A total of 24 countries were represented this year. Norway took home the gold; the U.S. won the silver medal; and Sweden took home a bronze for third place. This was the first year the Americans placed higher than sixth in the international competition. The American team was ledby Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud, and Gavin Kaysen. French Laundry executive sous chef Philip Tessier and his commis Skylar Stover rounded out the American team.
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Team USA's meat dish

Team USA's fish dish
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Charlatan · Jan 28, 2015

Good to know.

Sex offender released on special, public safety... | The Kingston Whig-Standard

Lindy · Jan 28, 2015

redux said: ↑

U.S. Takes Home Silver Medal in Bocuse d'Or 2015
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All I can say is that it looks awfully pretentious quite delicious.

Chris Noyb · Feb 5, 2015

Lindy said: ↑

All I can say is that it looks awfully pretentious quite delicious.
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I'll go with awfully pretentious.
--- merged: Jan 29, 2015 12:10 PM ---

Charlatan said: ↑

Good to know.

Sex offender released on special, public safety... | The Kingston Whig-Standard
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Except this part:

"...She said Holmes has previously violated terms attached to his long-term supervision order while he was resident at the fed-e ral (sic) community correctional centre, located on the grounds of Frontenac Institution.
Holmes told the judge those violations did not add any time to his sentence, however...."

Charlatan · Jan 29, 2015

I am glad he did prison time at all. He is a nasty bit of work.

Baraka_Guru · Jan 29, 2015

Charlatan said: ↑

Good to know.

Sex offender released on special, public safety... | The Kingston Whig-Standard
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That's my hometown.

Charlatan · Jan 29, 2015

Baraka_Guru said: ↑

That's my hometown.
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He was originally from Scarborough.

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Taliesin Slightly Tilted

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